alterior.nethttp://alterior.net/
en-usshawn@alterior.netCopyright 20042004-02-02T18:24:58-08:00hourly12000-01-01T12:00+00:00DEA: Excessive Water Sales == Drug Usehttp://alterior.net/archives/000029.php
The DEA, in association with the ABC, presents: Yet Another Nightclub Ecstasy Crack-Down. A recap: government agencies, with the help of a self-proclaimed ex-LAPD "rave expert," have finished an undercover investigation at...29@http://alterior.net/The DEA, in association with the ABC, presents: Yet Another Nightclub Ecstasy Crack-Down. A recap: government agencies, with the help of a self-proclaimed ex-LAPD "rave expert," have finished an undercover investigation at LA's 1015 nightclub with the arrest of 5 people and the seizure of over 10,000 MDMA pills. That's bad. However, I feel that it is my civic duty to point out, nestled between vaguely informative nuggets in the article, this horrifyingly overgeneralized, wholly circumstantial bit of misinformation:

During the course of the undercover investigation, ABC contacted Trinka D. Porrata, one of the nation's leading experts on ecstasy and rave events, who visited the Circus. Porrata identified the club as a "rave" event due to the lack of drug or weapon searches at the front door, extensive security, numerous patrons under the influence of designer drugs, the type of music, laser lighting, glow sticks, sales of water bottles and so-called power drinks with a high concentration of caffeine such as Red Bull, an outside cooling off area, and other factors.

Read that again. Read it until you're angry, confused, or frightened. If you're none of the above after a couple readings, then you need to get your head checked, because it's straight-up wrong. The investigation at 1015 has resulted in the club's ban on glow sticks. So, what do electronic music, laser lighting, glow sticks, water, and oxygen have in common? "Drugs," you say? Not necessarily.

The commonality is dance, and the culture established upon the music that inspires and encourages it. People that go out to dance need to stay hydrated, whether they're on drugs or not (by drinking water, not alcoholic beverages). It is their right to cool off outside the hot, sweaty confines of the dancefloor, and in California, to smoke. Caffeinated drinks such as Red Bull aid sober dancers in staying awake and alert, much like the coffee society expects us to drink so we can stay productive in the workplace. The depressive qualities of alcohol are not conducive to late-night dancing, much to the chagrin of the ABC, I'm sure. Laser lights and glow sticks, though they may enhance the psychedelic properties of some drugs, help get people in the mood to dance. The use of such equipment to create an atmosphere is an artistic form of expression protected by the first amendment. The DEA has already been smacked down after attempting to ban "rave-related paraphenalia" from electronic music venues in Louisiana. How does the government continue to justify such restrictions?

Don't go to nightclubs? It doesn't matter. Don't listen to electronic music? The government cares not. If drug use can be linked to any activity that you take part in, both federal and local authorities have every intention of either stopping it, or making it so unpleasant to organize and carry it out that (or so they hope) people will eventually give up. They've convinced a majority of Americans that ecstasy is bad, pointing to the deaths of tens of teens across the nation in recent years, despite the (inconclusive) findings of internationally sponsored, impartial tests that have continually refuted the drug's reported risks and side effects. Yet the only tests the American public hears about involve monkeys suffering brain damage after repeated subcutaneous injections. No attention was paid to statements such as MAPS' excellent reply to the findings of this DEA-sponsored experiment. Interestingly enough, one impartial test I came across was only accessible through the google cache. Another study equates the risk of death as a result of ecstasy use to that of "snow sports, DIY, food poisoning, air travel, passive smoking and homocide."

Even worse, these activities will be forced underground (this has already happened to "rave" culture), where its participants will no longer have access to such amenities as water, ventilation, or on-hand EMT's. The conservative regime, in cahoots with "legitimate" drug manufacturers, the Puritanistic religious right, and power-hungry law enforcement agencies, has come one step closer to taking away your right to dance. Remember the Salem Witch Trials?

]]>drugs2004-02-02T18:24:58-08:00Having Met the Makershttp://alterior.net/archives/000023.php
Check out the rest for some juicy browser news, product rumors, interviewee dirt and atendee slander. Well okay, not really. But do allow me to explain why I finally think everyone's been sold on XML.23@http://alterior.net/Meet the Makers is a conference held in both New York and San Francisco where people are intended to be able to discuss the future of web design. Unfortunately, the session I attended turned into a series of advertisements and vague overviews of proprietary technology, only interspersed with intelligent discussion. The saving grace for me was time spent talking with Tantek Çelik (of Mac IE's Tasman rendering engine fame) and Arun Ranganathan (Netscape Senior Software Engineer) about web standards, and the future of their two great browsers.

This isn't too say that I regret having gone (for free nonetheless, much thanks to Brian Alvey). But it didn't do much to tame my disillusionment with the web's current state, or my skepticism towards the solutions that continue to sell despite the overall economic downturn. What particularly bothered me was the prevelance of clunky, over-complicated, and oftentimes platform-specific technologies, and the continued existence of the so-called "prevailing market forces" that drive their adoption. I'm no marketing whiz, and admittedly, my eutopian view of the internet is flawed and unrealistic, but I do know better than to build (for instance) a CMS that's too bloated with client-side interactivity to work with anything other than IE on Windows.

]]>geekspeak2002-10-22T22:40:25-08:00Stylesheet Switching with PHPhttp://alterior.net/archives/000021.php
All the hubub over the recent Wired News reformulation in XHTML and CSS has brought up a lot of questions. A recent one on css-discuss concerned the implementation of stylesheet switchers: bits...21@http://alterior.net/All the hubub over the recent Wired News reformulation in XHTML and CSS has brought up a lot of questions. A recent one on css-discuss concerned the implementation of stylesheet switchers: bits of JavaScript or server-side logic that change the appearance of pages by loading different screen stylesheets. In the interest of advancing this technology, I've whipped up a PHP solution which I'd like to share with you.

It's kinda funny that, in between when I started this project (the date for this entry indicates the first time I saved it, not when it was published) and finished documenting it (approx. 2002-10-14 19:41), two completely separateimplementations have been released. It's a strange coincidence, and by no means is the technique shared by all three revolutionary or ground-breaking. Regardless, check them all out and let me know which one you think is better. And remember: competition breeds innovation. ;)

]]>web2002-10-13T16:03:47-08:00The Font Reporthttp://alterior.net/archives/000017.php
A long, long time ago, I posted a lengthy response to an email on webdesign-l summarizing the state of CSS type sizing on the web, and the obstacles facing authors that wish...17@http://alterior.net/A long, long time ago, I posted a lengthy response to an email on webdesign-l summarizing the state of CSS type sizing on the web, and the obstacles facing authors that wish to make their text accessible to a wide variety of audiences. A couple people asked me afterwards if I could post it for posterity, and I said, "sure." Then I forgot. More than 2 months later, here it is:

As pointed out several times on this list, and articles on various blogs and resource sites, there is no "perfect" unit for the web. This is by no means a thorough description of the problems you'll run into, or a recommendation of which ones to use, but here are some of the things I've learned in my time spent with CSS font styling...

]]>geekspeak2002-09-20T16:06:00-08:0012" Picks: 8/02http://alterior.net/archives/000016.php
With all the moving stuff going on, and work being the hell that it is, I haven't had that much time to go record shopping. Nonetheless, here are my house picks for...16@http://alterior.net/With all the moving stuff going on, and work being the hell that it is, I haven't had that much time to go record shopping. Nonetheless, here are my house picks for the month:

Nathan Drew Larsen - Give Chase [Mise En Place Remix] (Airtight)

The Logic Box - Lezard Voice (Adult Only)

Chill (?) - Do It (Blueprint Music)

Jess Mindt - Urban Tap (Combustible)

Robin Porter & Mike Carr - Mental Stealth EP (Immigrant)

Omni A.M. & Casey Hogan - In Time of Flying (Euphoria)

George T - If Deepness Is Your Weakness (Funky Piranha)

Maetrik - The Fall Out EP (Intrinsic Design)

Terry Francis - Hello, Acid Dathera (Technical House)

Chad Mitchell & Jay Tripwire - Over It (Republica)

Stay tuned for more charts, I'm going to try making this a recurring deal. I would also like to make the announcement that my friend George's record is being considered for licensing on a new mix CD by Hipp-E and Halo on Fabric's new imprint. Good luck, George!

]]>audio2002-08-13T10:41:31-08:00W3C Drafts: XHTML 2.0, CSS2.1http://alterior.net/archives/000015.php
15@http://alterior.net/The W3C released several new drafts this week, most notably the XHTML 2.0 Working Draft. The new proposed spec drops <img> in favor of the more robust <object> element, allowing for a nested hierarchy of different media objects that can be displayed by the UA in the event that certain content types are unsupported.]]>geekspeak2002-08-09T13:28:31-08:00Bad Haikushttp://alterior.net/archives/000013.php
Consolation Champs is running a haiku contest, the winner of which will receive a copy of Eric Meyer's new book. I'm no web whore, but I'll be damned if I pass up...13@http://alterior.net/Consolation Champs is running a haiku contest, the winner of which will receive a copy of Eric Meyer's new book. I'm no web whore, but I'll be damned if I pass up an opportunity to make somebody read my crappy poetry. Here are my 3 entries:

border-style: dotted
Is the rule for trendy blogs.
Let's see something new.

Well-formed documents
reward with validity
given proper DOCTYPE's.

Teach vim to children
lest they be stuck with other,
shoddy editors.

]]>miscellany2002-08-05T21:38:55-08:00Bound for Oaktownhttp://alterior.net/archives/000014.php
As much as I love San Francisco, enough is enough. I'll bet there are nicer places to live in the city than across the street from a housing project, but they're certainly...14@http://alterior.net/As much as I love San Francisco, enough is enough. I'll bet there are nicer places to live in the city than across the street from a housing project, but they're certainly more expensive than I can afford. I've done my time in cruddy victorians slathered in 20 layers of paint. I've seen enough crackheads fighting outside my window at 2am, pissing on my front steps. It's time for a change.

People tell me that the good life is in the East Bay, and that's why Melissa and I are packing up and moving to Oakland. For less than the price of our cramped, third floor apartment, we're getting a freshly-painted, well-maintained house, with amenities unheard of to long-time city-dwellers: a back yard, a garage, and an attic. Finally, I'll be able to move all those boxes into a storage space! Melissa will be able to grow those crazy plants she's been talking about! My car will no longer be shat upon by birds, rammed into and side-swiped by wreckless, drug-addled drivers!

I'm going to start a campaign amongst my friends to get all of them out of the city. No longer will we be driven into bankruptcy by DPT! No longer will we pay 3/4 or our salaray in rent! Down with San Francisco! Death to greedy, cold-hearted, irresponsible landlords and the independently wealthy and/or overpaid scum that blindly accept their tyrannical stranglehold on housing! East Bay, REPRUHZENT!

]]>miscellany2002-08-05T20:05:44-08:00RAVE Act rehashhttp://alterior.net/archives/000012.php
The latest attack on music culture by the fundamentalist regime came on June 18th in the form of the RAVE Act (enter "s2633" as the Bill Number, or download the PDF), a...12@http://alterior.net/The latest attack on music culture by the fundamentalist regime came on June 18th in the form of the RAVE Act (enter "s2633" as the Bill Number, or download the PDF), a piece of proposed legislation bent on "Reducing America's Vulnerability to Ecstacy". The bill has serious implications for the safety of young dancers hard-pressed to find quality entertainment in the MTV age - but more importantly, it tugs at the very fabric of our freedom of assembly and personal expression.]]>audio2002-07-26T16:10:53-08:00US Drug Policyhttp://alterior.net/archives/000011.php
Nobody debates that the US is a little behind the times in many respects. But England's recent relaxation of drug policies regarding marijuana makes us look like idiots. I (obviously, if you...11@http://alterior.net/Nobody debates that the US is a little behind the times in many respects. But England's recent relaxation of drug policies regarding marijuana makes us look like idiots.

I (obviously, if you know me) support the decriminalization of marijuana. Far too many law enforcement resources are directed toward the pointless pursuit of detaining harmless pot smokers. This has all been said before, as noted by many comments to a recent kuro5hin article that rehashes (heh) the problem of the States' overblown criminalization of soft drugs. Please, read the article, even if you are blindly (heck, even purposefully) opposed to drug use or legalization. I found one comment regarding heroin addiction and the "tradition" of overdose reports by coroners very informative.